I know that I’m cutting it a little fine (okay…very fine), but I didn’t want to let Easter go by without sharing a little sweet treat to mark the occasion! Luckily, this recipe is super quick and easy, so it makes for a great, last-minute bake.

Today’s recipe is a combination of two of my all-time favourite treats: Easter Nests & Mars Bar Rice Crispy Cakes. These are my… Mars Bar Rice Crispy Nests!

Imagine, if you will, a chocolate cereal nest, filled with Mini Eggs (as it should be), but, instead of straight chocolate, this mixture is made with caramel-y, nougat-y Mars Bars (and the nests are drizzled with extra melted chocolate, because it is Easter, after all). These Mars Bar Rice Crispy Nests are sweet and delicious: a super fun spin on an Easter classic.

Table of Contents

• Ingredients
• How to Make Mars Bar Rice Crispy Nests
• Tips & Tricks
• Recipe

Ingredients

To make these Mars Bar Rice Crispy Nests, you’ll need the following ingredients:

• Mars Bars

The star of the show! You’ll need 4 x 39.4g bars (which, handily enough, equates to 1 multipack of the bars).

• Butter

I use unsalted butter for this recipe.

• Golden syrup

Golden syrup is melted together with the Mars Bars and butter to make a deliciously sticky, caramel-y mixture that holds the rice crispies together. I’ve given the amount in grams here, because wrangling golden syrup out of a measuring spoon is one of my biggest pet peeves: I won’t be inflicting that on you here— you can weigh the syrup right into the saucepan!

• Rice Crispies

These go by so many names: rice crispies, rice bubbles, rice pops… the list goes on! Basically, if you’ve got puffed rice cereal, you’re good to go. Theoretically, you should be able to make these nests with other types of cereal (shredded wheat and cornflakes are common alternatives for standard chocolate nests), but I’ve only ever tried this particular recipe with rice crispies.

• Mini Eggs

Mini Eggs are a vital part of any Easter Nest (apart from, you know, actual nests). I’ve used three eggs per nest here, but you can do as many or as few as you like.

• Milk chocolate

I like to drizzle the nests with a little chocolate because a) it’s Easter, b) it helps to secure the Mini Eggs in place and c) chocolate goes SO WELL with Mars Bar Rice Crispy Cakes! I’ve used milk chocolate, but feel free to use whatever chocolate you like: for an even sweeter treat, try white chocolate, or, for a slightly more grown-up snack, use dark chocolate.

How to Make Mars Bar Rice Crispy Nests

These nests are SO easy to make! You basically just melt the Mars Bars, butter and golden syrup together, stir through the rice crispies, divide them between some fairy cake cases, add some Mini Eggs and drizzle the whole lot with chocolate. That’s it! They’re perfect for making with kids, because they don’t require any actual baking— just be careful with the warm Mars Bar mixture.

Start by lining a 12-cup fairy cake tin with paper liners and set it aside, ready for later.

Chop the Mars Bars into chunks, then dice the butter.

Put the Mars Bar chunks, diced butter and golden syrup into a medium saucepan and place over low heat.

Stir frequently while everything melts together. Eventually, you’ll end up with a smooth, thick and shiny mixture, like this.

Take the pan off the heat and immediately stir through the rice crispies.

The mixture will be quite stiff, so you’ll need to use a little bit of elbow grease for this! Work quickly, because the mixture will stiffen up even more as it starts to cool.

Still working quickly, use two dessertspoons to divide the rice crispy mixture between the 12 fairy cake cases (about a generously heaped dessertspoon’s worth of mixture per case).

Press 3 (or however many you fancy) Mini Eggs into the centre of each rice crispy heap, pushing them down a little to make sure they’re nicely stuck in and to help create that ‘nest’ shape. If your rice crispy mixture has cooled a bit by this point, the eggs might not stick firmly into it, but that’s okay: we’ll be adding melted chocolate next, which will help to keep them nice and secure!

The final step is to drizzle over some melted chocolate. I like to use a fork for this for ease (I think the tines help to get the drizzle effect!).

Drizzle the chocolate back and forth across each nest, then set them aside at room temperature to firm up for 1-2 hours before serving.

The finished nests can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for about a week. I recommend storing them in their paper cases, because the Mars Bar mixture can make them a little sticky.

Tips & Tricks

This is a super simple recipe to make, but I do have a few tips & tricks, particularly for working with the Mars Bar mixture, that I wanted to share!

• Don’t skip the paper cases

The Mars Bar mixture is significantly stickier than the classic chocolate mixture and won’t firm up as much, so the paper cases are essential for this recipe!

• Be careful not to let the Mars Bar mixture overheat.

Mars Bars are chocolate-y, so the mixture will seize up and split if it’s overheated. Stick to a low heat, stir frequently and make sure to chop up both the Mars Bars and butter beforehand to ensure they melt evenly.

• Use a flat-edged, wooden spoon to mix the rice crispies into the Mars Bar mixture.

Once the Mars Bar mixture starts cooling down, it will become increasingly stiff and hard to work with. Because of this, you need to use a strong utensil to stir through the rice crispies (along with some good old fashioned elbow grease!). I like to use a wooden spoon with a flat edge, because it means I can really scrape down to the bottom of the pan and ensure everything is mixed perfectly.

• Work quickly

Because the Mars Bar mixture gets harder to work with as it cools, you need to start working quickly as soon as you take it off the heat. That includes when you’re mixing in the cereal, dividing it between the fairy cake cases and adding the Mini Eggs. One of the reasons this recipe is so good to make with children is that it means you have a second pair of hands— you can be dividing up the mixture while they press in the eggs!

Recipe

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Mars Bar Rice Crispy Nests

A fun twist on the classic chocolate rice crispy nests for Easter, these easy treats are made with a melted Mars Bar mixture and feature a melted chocolate drizzle.

Course Dessert, Snack

Cuisine British

Keyword Chocolate, Easter, Mars Bars, Nests, no-bake, Rice crispies

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Set Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Servings 12 nests

Equipment

• 1 x 12-hole fairy cake tin, lined with paper cases.

Ingredients

• 4 x 39.4g Mars Bars, chopped.
• 40 g unsalted butter, diced.
• 25 g golden syrup
• 75 g rice crispies
• 36 Mini Eggs (approx. 120g).
• 40 g milk chocolate, melted.

Instructions

• Place the chopped Mars Bars, diced butter and golden syrup into a medium saucepan over low heat. Stir frequently until the butter and Mars Bars have melted completely and you have a smooth mixture.
• Remove the pan from the heat and immediately tip in the rice crispies. Working quickly, stir through the cereal until all of the rice crispies are completely coated in the Mars Bar mixture.
• Divide the mixture between 12 fairy cake cases (approx. 1 generously heaped dessertspoon per case).
• Press 3 Mini Eggs into the centre of each case, pushing them down to help form the rice crispy mixture into a 'nest' shape.
• Drizzle each nest with melted chocolate, then set aside at room temperature to firm up for an hour or two before serving.
• The Mars Bar Rice Crispy Nests can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for about a week. I recommend storing them in their paper cases, because the Mars Bar mixture can be a little sticky.

If you missed yesterday’s post, I recently made a wedding cake for a family friend and, this weekend, I’m sharing the recipes & all of the fun, summer-y details here on the blog!

This was only my second time making a wedding cake (check out my Wedding Cake Week series for the first time, where I made the cake for my brother’s big day!), so I am by no means a professional, but I’m so happy with how these cakes turned out and I can’t wait to share them with you!

We’re starting small with today’s post and focusing on the homemade candied orange peel decorations. These can be made way in advance (to minimise the inevitable, last-minute wedding stress) and make such a pretty, twinkle-y (and delicious) cake decoration. Plus, they’re surprisingly easy to make!

Table of Contents

• Ingredients
• How to Make Candied Orange Peels
• Storing the Candied Orange Peels
• Recipe

Ingredients

You only need 4 ingredients to make these candied orange peels:

• An unwaxed orange

You only need the rind of the orange for this recipe, so feel free to make yourself a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice after you’ve made these candied peels! I recommend using an unwaxed orange for this recipe, seeing as you’ll be eating the rind.

• Caster sugar

The orange peels are gently cooked in a sugar syrup to candy them, so you’ll need sugar! It’s best to use caster sugar for this step, because it dissolves more quickly/easily than granulated sugar, but you can choose either golden or white sugar. I prefer to use white caster sugar here, because I think it maintains the vibrant, orange hue of the peels better.

• Water

Does water even count as an ingredient? Who knows… Either way, you need some water to make the sugar syrup.

• Granulated sugar

The candied peels are tossed in granulated sugar to give them a pretty, sparkly appearance and make them easier to handle (read: less sticky). I like to use golden granulated sugar for this, but you can use different types of sugar to achieve different finishes to your candied peels. Granulated sugar gives a sparser, crunchier and more sparkle-y appearance than caster sugar, which provides a denser, crispier coating to the peels. Using golden sugar means there’s less contrast between the shade of the candied peels and the sugar, which gives them a more subtle, twinkle-y vibe, while white sugar will give them a more noticeably ‘frosty’ look. All of this to say: it’s up to you! Pick your favourite, or just use what you have on hand: they’ll taste great whatever!

How to Make Candied Orange Peels

These orange peels are deceptively easy to make and go a long way: you don’t need many to add a touch of citrus decoration to your bakes! Having said that, you can easily scale up this recipe, just use more oranges and increase the amounts of sugar/water proportionally.

To make the candied peels, start by preparing the orange. Use a sharp vegetable peeler to peel all of the rind off the orange, aiming for long strips. I like to peel the orange vertically, from the stem down, so that all of my strips are a similar length.

Once you have all of your peelings ready, use a sharp knife to cut each one into very thin ribbons.

The next step is to boil the peels in water for a few minutes, to help remove some of the bitterness. Fill a small saucepan with water and bring it to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, then add the peels and allow them to simmer for 3 minutes.

After the peels have simmered, strain them and rinse them in cold water. While you’re there, rinse out the saucepan, ready for the sugar syrup.

For the sugar syrup, place the caster sugar and the water into the saucepan and set it over medium heat. You don’t want to stir the syrup, because this might make it crystallise. Just let it sit over the heat until the sugar has dissolved.

Once the sugar has dissolved, keep the pan over the heat until the syrup comes to a steady boil.

At this point, add the drained, rinsed peels to the sugar syrup and turn the heat to low.

Allow the peels to cook in the syrup for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, strain the peels through a heatproof sieve, pressing down on them gently with the back of a spoon to remove any excess syrup. You can keep this syrup to use in orange-flavoured drinks, if you want! It will keep in the fridge for a few days days.

Place the golden granulated sugar (or the sugar of your choosing) into a bowl and add the strained, cooked peels.

Use two forks to toss the peels in the sugar, until the individual ribbons have separated out and each peel is well-coated in the sugar.

Remove the peels from the bowl and spread them out on a large baking tray, lined with baking paper. I usually do this with my hands, picking out the peels one at a time (they should be much cooler at this point, but make sure to check first so you don’t burn yourself!), so that I can really separate them out, but, if you’re in a rush, you can shake the whole lot through a clean, dry sieve, to remove all of the excess sugar.

Set the baking tray aside in a cool, dry place overnight, to dry out completely before using to decorate your cake/bake (or just snacking on them, because they’re pretty tasty!).

Storing the Candied Orange Peels

These candied orange peels can be made way in advance, which is perfect for minimising any last-minute event/wedding stress!

After the peels have dried out overnight, just transfer them to an airtight container and store them in a cool, dry place. Like this, they’ll keep for 6-8 weeks, so you can get way ahead with your prep!

Recipe

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Candied Orange Peel

This versatile treat can be enjoyed by itself, dipped in chocolate, chopped & stirred into batters, or used to decorate other bakes!

Course Snack

Keyword Orange

Prep Time 22 minutes minutes

Cook Time 18 minutes minutes

Drying Time 12 hours hours

Total Time 12 hours hours 40 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 1 unwaxed orange
• 100 g white caster sugar (see Note 1).
• 100 ml water
• 50 g golden granulated sugar (see Note 2).

Instructions

• Start by preparing the orange. Use a vegetable peeler to peel the rind off the orange in long strips. Then, use a large, sharp knife to cut the peelings into very thin ribbons.
• Bring a small saucepan of water to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, then add the orange peel strips and simmer for 3 minutes.
• Drain the orange peels through a heatproof sieve and rinse thoroughly in cold water. Set the peels aside and wash out the saucepan.
• Place the white caster sugar and the water into the saucepan. Set over medium heat and allow the sugar to dissolve (do not stir at this stage, or the syrup might crystallise).
• Once all of the sugar has dissolved, bring the syrup to a steady boil, then add the drained orange peels to the pan. Turn the heat down to low and cook the peels in the syrup for 15 minutes.
• After 15 minutes, pass the peels through the heatproof sieve to remove the syrup (you can reserve this orange syrup to use in drinks later!).
• Transfer the drained peels to a bowl containing the granulated sugar and toss with two forks until all of the peels are coated.
• Remove the peels from the sugar bowl (you can pick them out individually or use a dry sieve to shake away the excess sugar). The excess sugar can now be discarded (or, like the syrup, used for some orange-y drinks).
• Spread the peels out on a baking tray, lined with greaseproof paper, making sure they are in a single layer. Set them aside in a cool, dry place, overnight to dry out, then transfer them to an airtight container and store in a cool, dark place until ready to use/serve. The peels can be stored like this for 6-8 weeks.

Notes

1. I like to use white caster sugar for the syrup, because I find that it helps to preserve the vibrant, orange hue of the peels, but you can use golden caster sugar if that’s what you have on hand. I would recommend using caster sugar for this stage, because it dissolves more quickly/easily than granulated.
2. I like to use golden granulated sugar for tossing the candied peels in, because I think it gives a pretty, twinkle-y effect, but you can use whatever sugar you have on hand/prefer. White sugar will gives a slightly frostier effect, while caster/finer sugar will give a crispier, denser coating. 

I love making homemade ice cream, but, when it’s super hot, no one wants to be standing over the stove, stirring custard, right? Enter: this 3-Ingredient, No-Churn, Lime Ice Cream.

For this ice cream, I was inspired by Brazilian Lemonade (also known as Swiss Lemonade, I believe!), in which whole limes are blended with ice, sugar, water and condensed milk to make a refreshing summer drink (though it can, apparently, be quite bitter if the limes are blended for too long). The combination of double cream and condensed milk is a tried-and-true base for no-churn ice cream (I learned about it from biggerbolderbaking.com!), but I usually find it a little too sweet for my liking. Thus, the idea to combine the concept of Brazilian Lemonade with a no-churn ice cream was born (after all, both contain condensed milk): you don’t have to worry about it being too sweet, because the sour, (potential) bitterness of the lime tempers the sweetness a little bit, and you don’t have to worry about it being too bitter, because the sweetness of the condensed milk tempers that too!

Overall, it’s a match made in heaven: 3 ingredients, super quick and easy to make and the perfect balance of flavours to cool you down as we enter the final stages of summer. Because of the similarities in ingredients, this ice cream tastes pretty much exactly like a slice of key lime pie, just frozen (and without the biscuit base, though you could absolutely remedy that by topping your scoops with some crumbled up digestives!).

Table of Contents

• Ingredients
• Equipment
• Making the Ice Cream
• No-Churn vs Regular Ice Cream
• Recipe

Ingredients

As the name suggests, this ice cream only requires 3 ingredients:

• Limes

You’ll be using whole limes for this recipe (rind and all!) so I’d recommend using unwaxed ones.

• Double cream

You want your cream to be very cold, so use it straight from the fridge. If you’re in the US, use heavy cream.

• Condensed milk

I use Carnation condensed milk, which is the most common, readily-available brand in the UK. It comes in 397g tins and you’ll need a whole tin for this recipe. Just like the cream, you want the condensed milk to be cold, so chill it in the fridge for at least an hour before using it.

Equipment

This is a no-churn ice cream recipe, so you don’t need an ice cream maker for it! You do, however, need the following pieces of equipment:

• Blender

Confession: I don’t actually own a freestanding blender (what can I say? I’m just not a smoothie girl…). I do, however, have an immersion blender (go figure), which works just as well here (even if it requires a little bit more effort). Either one will work, but you will need some type of blending apparatus to blitz the limes up!

• Electric whisk

Okay, so you could make this recipe with a hand whisk but it will take a lot of elbow grease! An electric whisk will make this process much faster and less like a workout routine. I used my freestanding electric mixer, but an electric hand whisk would work just as well.

• Freezer containers

You can use any freezer-safe container to store your ice cream in, but I love using these kraft paper pint tubs (mainly because I love the whimsy of making my own pints of ice cream, but also because I can easily label the tubs with a permanent marker!). This recipe makes enough ice cream to fill about 2 1/2 of the 16oz tubs (annoying, I know, but not annoying enough to warrant using an extra 1/5 tin of condensed milk).

Making the Ice Cream

Now it’s time to make the ice cream (and it’s a super easy process)!

Start by chopping up your limes. We’ll be using the whole fruit in this recipe, but, to make it easier for your blender, you want to chop them up a little first! I like to take a little off each end of the limes beforehand, just to remove the woody stalk/excess pith.

Then, chop each lime into about 8 pieces (or whatever you fancy, it’s up to you and the strength of your blender!).Place all of your lime pieces into your blender (or, if you’re using an immersion blender like me, a strong, tall, thin container like this WECK jar is ideal).

Then, blend away! Don’t worry too much about over-blending the limes and releasing their bitterness, because there’s a lot of condensed milk in this recipe to counteract any bitterness.

Blend until you have a lime-y pulp, then strain that pulp through a fine mesh sieve, pressing on it with the back of a spoon to release all of the juices (if you want, you can go back and blend the leftover pulp from the sieve again to get even more juice, which is what I did!).

You’ll be left with a green liquid that has the consistency of regular lime juice, but a much more vibrant green colour and a more opaque appearance (so it’s lime juice with oomph!).

Set the lime juice aside and place the double cream in the bowl of a freestanding electric mixer (or just a large bowl, if you’re using a handheld mixer).

Whisk on medium-high speed until the cream reaches soft peaks.

While the cream is whipping, add the cold condensed milk to the lime juice and stir it well to combine. When it’s cold, condensed milk becomes extra thick and sticky, and it will thicken up even more when it’s mixed with the lime juice, but don’t worry: that’s how it’s supposed to be!

Once the cream is ready, add the lime/condensed milk mixture to the bowl of the stand mixer.

Use a large spatula to fold the condensed milk mixture in. I like to do this to ensure everything is fully combined before I start the second whisking.

Once everything is incorporated, whisk the whole thing again on high speed until the mixture reaches stiff peaks. This won’t take very long (usually less than 30 seconds), so be careful not to over-whip the mixture, as this will cause the cream to split.

Once the mixture reaches stiff peaks, you can transfer it to your freezer containers, label them (always an important step for freezer storage, I find!) and stash them away in the freezer overnight, before enjoying! The ice cream will keep in the freezer for about 6 weeks.

This is a pretty firm-set ice cream, so I recommend taking it out of the freezer and letting it sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes before scooping (and, if needed, using a slightly warm ice cream scoop) to make the process super easy!

No-Churn vs Regular Ice Cream

Okay, look: no-churn ice cream is never going to be exactly the same as a regular, custard-based ice cream. The ingredients are completely different and the method is even more different, so these two frozen treats are, well, different.

I find that no-churn ice creams are usually sweeter (it’s inevitable, with all that condensed milk!) and more firmly set when frozen than their custard-based counterpart. The textural difference is most notable when the two ice creams melt: with regular ice cream, you get a thin, milky custard. With this no-churn ice cream, you get a thick cream (reminiscent of softly whipped cream), which my mind cannot comprehend, but, truthfully, is still enjoyable. Both ice cream styles are creamy and smooth (not icy, as you might expect with a no-churn ice cream), but they’re creamy in different ways: this no-churn ice cream feels like smooth, frozen cream, whereas regular ice cream tastes like smooth, frozen custard. It’s just personal preference which one you enjoy more!

For me, it’s hard to beat the taste, texture and general deliciousness of regular ice cream, but it is kind of labour-intensive to make: you make the custard, cool the custard, churn the custard, then, finally, wait for the whole thing to freeze. With no-churn ice cream, you whisk everything up and freeze it: that’s it! If you’re in a hurry, have limited free time/energy or just want a sweet, frozen treat as soon as possible, no-churn ice cream is your friend.

Recipe

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3-Ingredient, No-Churn Lime Ice Cream

Inspired by Brazilian Lemonade, this no-churn recipe tastes like a slice of Key Lime Pie and uses whole, blended limes to give the ice cream an extra zesty kick!

Course Dessert, Snack

Cuisine American, Brazilian

Keyword 3 ingredient, Ice cream, Lime, no-bake, No-churn

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Freeze Time: 12 hours hours

Total Time 12 hours hours 10 minutes minutes

Servings 2.5 pints

Equipment

• 1 Blender (see Note 1).
• 1 Electric whisk (handheld or freestanding).
• Freezer-safe containers.

Ingredients

• 4 limes
• 450 ml double cream, cold.
• 397 g condensed milk, cold (see Note 2).

Instructions

• Slice the ends off of the limes, then chop each lime into 8 pieces. Place the lime chunks into a blender, then blend until you have a chunky lime pulp.
• Strain the pulp through a fine mesh sieve, catching the green liquid in a jug/bowl below. Press down on the pulp to extract all of the juice. If desired, return the remaining pulp to the blender and blend/strain again to get even more juice.
• Whisk the cream to soft peaks.
• Mix the cold condensed milk into the lime juice. It will thicken up considerably, but that is okay!
• Fold the condensed milk mixture into the softly whipped cream until incorporated. Then, whisk the whole mixture again until it forms stiff peaks. Be careful not to over-whip.
• Transfer the ice cream mixture to your freezer containers and freeze overnight before serving. Allow to sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes before scooping and serving. Stored in the freezer, the ice cream will keep for about 6 weeks.

Notes

Notes:

1. You can use a regular, freestanding blender or an immersion blender for this. If using an immersion blender, place the lime chunks into a strong, tall, thin jar/jug/cup before blending, to make the process easier. 
2. Cold condensed milk makes for the best no-churn ice cream, so make sure to chill the condensed milk in the fridge for at least an hour before using it. 

This is such a simple bake that it barely even warrants a recipe (truthfully, we never used to use one and just did everything by eye), but I do like knowing the exact ratios, so I wanted to share the exact recipe here anyway.

Table of Contents

• Ingredients
• How to Make Easter Nests
• Substitutions & Variations
• Recipe

Ingredients

You only need 3 ingredients to make these Easter Nests:

• Milk chocolate
• Rice crispies
• Mini Eggs

After a bit of trial and error, I found that the ideal ratio for these nests was a 2:1 ratio of chocolate to rice crispies (i.e. half the weight of rice crispies to that of the chocolate). With this combination, there’s enough chocolate to hold the nests together, but not so much that the nests set super hard (and are, as a result, super tricky to eat!).

You can absolutely tailor these nests to your preferences by changing up these basic ingredients. Check out the Substitutions & Variations section below for some ideas!

How to Make Easter Nests

Line a 12-hole fairy cake tin with paper cases and set it aside while you make the nest mixture.

You can serve the nests in the paper cases (handy for bake sales and keeping little fingers slightly less messy) or you can take them out of the cases before serving them (for maximum nest-iness), but definitely don’t skip the paper cases, or the nests will be a nightmare to get out of the tin!

For the nest mixture, start by melting the chocolate in a large, heatproof bowl. I do this in the microwave (on the lowest heat setting for 1 minute bursts at a time, stirring between each burst, until the chocolate is completely melted and smooth), but you can also do it on the hob, by setting the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water and stirring frequently until the chocolate is melted, if you prefer.

As soon as the chocolate is completely melted, add the rice crispies and mix everything together thoroughly.

You want every bit of cereal to be nicely coated in the chocolate. Make sure you work quickly though, because you don’t want the mixture to set at this point!

Once everything is well-combined, divide the mixture between the 12 paper cases in the fairy cake tin (about 1 heaped dessertspoon of mixture per case).

Use a spoon to gently push the mixture to the edges of each case. This will create a slight dip in the centre of each one, which gives the treats a more nest-like shape (and makes the perfect little space for the Mini Eggs!).

Press 3 Mini Eggs into each nest, placing them in the little dip you just made. Make sure to press them in gently, rather than just setting them on top, so that they stick to the chocolate and won’t fall out later.

Then, set the nests aside at room temperature for 1-2 hours, until the chocolate has completely set and the nests have firmed up, before serving. You can speed this process up by putting the nests into the fridge to harden, but I prefer to leave them at room temperature, because the chocolate can sometimes bloom in the fridge, which isn’t very pretty!

Substitutions & Variations

It’s super simple to customise this recipe to suit your personal preferences! Each element can be easily swapped/adapted, so you can make any kind of Easter Nest you feel like:

• Chocolate

Swap the milk chocolate for dark chocolate, or a 50:50 mix of milk and dark for a slightly less sweet version (you could also use white chocolate, but it wouldn’t look quite so nest-like!).

• Rice Crispies

You can also swap the rice crispies for another type of cereal: Shredded Wheat, cornflakes and cocoa pops are all popular alternatives (Shredded Wheat, in particular, gives a very nest-like appearance, though I don’t think the finished nests taste quite as nice as the rice crispy ones!). Just remember that different cereals have different surface areas, so you might need to increase/decrease the amount of cereal you use. I’d recommend starting with less cereal than you think you’ll need, then gradually adding more as needed, while you stir it into the chocolate, until you have a good balance of chocolate to cereal.

• Mini Eggs

I’ve used Mini Eggs here, because a) they’re delicious and b) they really help drive home the whole nest vibe, but you can absolutely use different sweets on top. There are loads of other small egg-shaped sweets around these days (particularly this time of year), or, if you’re not too bothered about maintaining the nest-iness, you can use any shape of small sweet! You could even add some fun sprinkles, if you like.

And that is my not-really-a-recipe recipe for Easter Nests! Let me know if you try them out!

Gemma

xxx

Recipe

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Easter Nests

A super easy, no-bake, chocolate-y treat, perfect for making with kids this Easter!

Course Dessert, Snack

Cuisine British

Keyword 3 ingredient, Chocolate, Milk Chocolate, Mini Eggs, Rice crispies

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Setting time 1 hour hour

Servings 12 nests

Equipment

• 1 12-hole fairy cake tin lined with paper cases.

Ingredients

• 180 g milk chocolate
• 90 g rice crispies
• 36 Cadbury Mini Eggs (approx. 120g).

Instructions

• Start by melting the chocolate in a large, heatproof bowl. You can do this in the microwave (heat for 1 minute bursts on the lowest temperature setting, stirring in between each burst, until chocolate is smooth) or by placing the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water.
• Once the chocolate is completely melted, add the rice crispies. Stir well until every bit of the cereal is coated in the chocolate, working quickly so that the chocolate doesn't set.
• Divide the mixture between the 12 paper cases in the prepared fairy cake tin (about 1 heaped dessertspoon of mixture per case). Use a spoon to make a slight dip in the centre of each nest.
• Before the chocolate sets, place 3 Mini Eggs into the central dip of each nest, making sure to press them in gently so that they stick.
• Set the nests aside at room temperature for 1-2 hours, until the chocolate has hardened. Once set, the Easter Nests are ready to be enjoyed!

Eggnog is traditional festive drink in many countries across the world, though it varies a little between regions and families. At its heart, it is a lightly spiced custard, often spiked with some sort of alcohol (rum, brandy and bourbon are popular choices), that can be served either hot or, more commonly, cold. It’s not a super common drink here in the UK, but I’ve always been interested in it (drinkable custard? Yes please!).

The process for making eggnog is incredibly similar to the process for making ice cream (you just don’t freeze/churn eggnog!) Naturally, then, I decided to make an Eggnog Ice Cream. This ice cream is infused with vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg, just like a classic eggnog. It also contains a dash of alcohol, but that can be omitted, if you prefer.

This ice cream is delicious on its own, but it’s also great served alongside all manner of warm puddings this time of year: sticky toffee, apple pie— whatever you fancy! It is spiced (and spiked), but none of the flavours are overwhelming— it’s still a neutral enough ice cream flavour that it can be served as an accompaniment.

Table of Contents

• Ingredients
• How to Make Eggnog Ice Cream
  • Infusing the Milk & Cream
  • Making the Ice Cream Base
  • Churning the Ice Cream
• Recipe

Ingredients

To make this eggnog ice cream, you will need:

• Double cream

Like all of my ice cream recipes, the base starts with a 50:50 combo of double cream and milk, which gives the perfect smooth and creamy texture.

• Milk

Ideally, you should use whole milk for this recipe. However, if you’re like me and never seem to have whole milk in the house, skimmed/semi-skimmed milk also work.

• Caster sugar

I use golden caster sugar, because I think it has more depth of flavour, but white caster sugar will also work. You will need to separate the sugar into two equal portions (60g each). One portion will be heated with the infused milk/cream, while the other will be whisked together with the egg yolks.

• Vanilla pod

The first of the 3 spices in this recipe, the vanilla pod gives a sweet, classic custard flavour to the ice cream.

• Cinnamon stick

The second flavouring in the recipe, cinnamon brings a festive spiciness to the ice cream. I’ve opted to infuse the dairy products with a whole cinnamon stick, rather than use ready-ground cinnamon, to keep the ice cream super smooth and silky, and prevent it from turning beige.

• Whole nutmeg

The final spice: freshly grated nutmeg has much more flavour than ready-ground nutmeg, so that’s what I’m using here. Make sure you use a fine grater for this, so the nutmeg is evenly distributed throughout the ice cream and doesn’t affect the texture too much.

• Egg yolks

You don’t need the whites for this recipe, so you can either use them straightaway for another bake (such as some macarons or meringues!), or freeze them for another time.

• Bourbon

This is my alcohol of choice for this eggnog ice cream, but you can use rum, brandy, or any other liqueur that you think would be tasty! The alcohol can also be omitted completely, if you would prefer to make a non-alcoholic ice cream.

How to Make Eggnog Ice Cream

It doesn’t take much to turn a regular old ice cream into an eggnog ice cream— you just add a bit of spice (and booze, if that’s your vibe).

The day before you plan to churn your ice cream, put the bowl of your ice cream maker into the freezer. The bowl needs to be really cold before you churn the custard, so you do (unfortunately) need to plan ahead!

Infusing the Milk & Cream

The first step is to infuse the milk and cream with the spices. Doing this, rather than just adding ground spices, helps to preserve the smooth, silky texture and neutral colour of the ice cream. It also means the flavours are stronger, so you get the best out of all of your ingredients!

Use a small, sharp knife to split the vanilla bean in half. Scrape out the seeds and add them to a medium-sized saucepan, along with the milk, cream, caster sugar, cinnamon stick and halved vanilla bean.

Grate in some nutmeg— I used about 1/8 tsp of nutmeg here, but you can adjust this to suit your tastes.

Place the saucepan over a low heat and, stirring every now and then to prevent the mixture from catching, bring it to just below the boil. When it’s ready, you’ll see little bubbles forming around the edge of the pan and there will be some steam rising from the mixture.

Remove the pan from the heat and cover with a lid. Set aside and leave to infuse for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, remove and discard the cinnamon stick and vanilla bean. Now, you can get on with making the custard!

Making the Ice Cream Base

Take about 125ml of the milk mixture out of the saucepan and set aside. Gently reheat the rest of the mixture over low heat until it comes back to just below the boil.

While this is happening, put the egg yolks into a large bowl with the rest of the sugar.

Using an electric whisk, beat the mixture until it is thick, pale and fluffy. This is called the ‘ribbon stage’, because the mixture should fall off the beaters in ribbons. To see if the ‘ribbon stage’ has been reached, draw a figure of eight just above the surface of the mixture with the beaters. If you can complete the figure before the ribbon settles back into the rest of the mixture, it’s ready!

Add the reserved 125ml of the cool milk mixture to the egg mixture and whisk to incorporate. This will slacken the egg mixture and make it easier to incorporate the hot milk mixture without cooking the eggs.

Once the milk mixture has come back up to just below a boil, you can start to add it to the eggs. While stirring the egg mixture,, pour in the hot milk mixture in a slow, steady stream, until it has all been added and everything is incorporated. It’s important to do this slowly, stirring all the time, so you do not cook the eggs and end up with lumps!

Pour the whole lot through a heatproof, fine mesh sieve (just in case there are any little pieces of cooked egg!) back into the saucepan and place it over a medium-low heat. If you use too high a heat, the custard might curdle, so be careful.

Cook the custard, stirring frequently with a heatproof spatula, until it has thickened slightly. When it’s ready, it should coat the back of a spoon— this will take about 8-10 minutes. Do not let the custard boil, or it will curdle. If you see any bubbles rising to the surface in the centre of the pan, remove the custard from the heat immediately (it should be thick enough at that point).

Pour the thickened custard into a heatproof jug and cover with clingfilm, making sure to press the clingfilm directly onto the surface of the custard, to prevent it from forming a skin. Allow the custard to cool slightly at room temperature before putting it into the fridge to chill for at least 3-4 hours, or preferably overnight.

Once the ice cream base is completely cold, before you churn the mixture, add the bourbon/other alcohol (if using) and stir well to incorporate. Adding the alcohol once the custard is cold will preserve the flavour (and kick!).

Churning the Ice Cream

I use the KitchenAid ice cream maker attachment to churn my ice creams, but any ice cream maker will do. This is not a no-churn recipe, unfortunately, so you will need some sort of ice cream maker!

Start by setting up the ice cream maker, as per your machine’s instructions. For the KitchenAid version, this just involves locking in the frozen bowl and attaching the churning paddles.

With the machine running, pour in the cold custard. It’s important to do this while the machine is running, so that the custard doesn’t immediately harden onto the sides of the machine, which will make it impossible to churn (and might break your machine)(I speak from experience).

Churn the ice cream for 10-30 minutes (or following your machine’s instructions), until it is thick and creamy.

Transfer the churned ice cream to a freezer-safe container, cover with a lid, then freezer for at least 3 hours (preferably overnight) before enjoying.

The ice cream will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months, so you can enjoy it throughout the entire festive season!

Recipe

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Eggnog Ice Cream

Homemade ice cream, infused with vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg, with an (optional) hit of bourbon— the perfect, festive treat on its own, but extra delicious served alongside a warm dessert.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword Bourbon, Cinnamon, Eggnog, Ice cream, Nutmeg, Vanilla

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Freeze + Chill Time 6 hours hours

Total Time 7 hours hours

Servings 8 big scoops

Equipment

• 1 ice cream maker (I use the KitchenAid attachment).

Ingredients

• 300 ml double cream
• 300 ml milk
• 120 g caster sugar, split into 2x60g portions (I use golden caster sugar).
• 1 vanilla pod
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/8 tsp finely grated fresh nutmeg
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 tbsp Bourbon (or your liqueur of choice, optional)(see Note 1).

Instructions

• The day before you plan to churn the ice cream, place the bowl of your ice cream maker into the freezer.

Infuse the milk/cream:

• Place the cream, milk and half of the sugar into a medium-sized saucepan. Use a small, sharp knife to split the vanilla bean in half and scrape out the seeds. Add the seeds, vanilla bean halves, cinnamon stick and grated nutmeg to the saucepan, then place over low heat.
• Stir every now and then while the sugar melts and the milk mixture heats up. Allow the mixture to come to just below the boil, then remove from the heat, cover with a lid and set aside to infuse for 30 minutes.
• After 30 minutes, remove and discard the two vanilla bean halves and the cinnamon stick.

Make the custard base:

• Remove 125ml of the infused milk mixture and set aside. Place the rest of the milk mixture back over the heat and stir every now and then while it comes back up to just below the boil.
• While this is happening, use an electric whisk to beat the egg yolks and the remaining sugar together, until the mixture is pale, thick and fluffy (the 'ribbon stage').
• Add the reserved 125ml of the milk mixture and whisk again to incorporate. This will slacken the eggs and make it easier to mix in the hot milk mixture.
• When the milk mixture has come up to temperature, add the milk to the eggs in a slow, steady stream, stirring all the time, until it has all been incorporated.
• Pour the mixture back into the saucepan through a heatproof, fine mesh sieve (to ensure the custard is smooth).
• Place the saucepan over a medium-low heat and stir frequently with a heatproof spatula as the custard thickens. Once thick (it should coat the back of a spoon, this will take about 8-10 minutes), remove from the heat.
• Pour the thickened custard into a heatproof jug and cover the surface directly with cling film, to prevent it from forming a skin. Allow to cool slightly at room temperature, then place into the fridge to chill for at least 3-4 hours (preferably overnight).
• Once the custard base is completely cold, add the bourbon/other alcohol (if using) and stir through well.

Churn the ice cream:

• Once the custard is cold and the alcohol (if using) has been added, set up your ice cream maker, as per your machine's instructions.
• With the machine running, pour the custard into the machine and allow to churn for 10-30 minutes, until thick and creamy.
• Transfer the churned ice cream to a freezer-safe container and freeze for at least 3 hours (preferably overnight) before serving. The ice cream will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Notes

1. Rum and brandy are both often found in eggnog, so would make a good substitute. The amount of alcohol listed in the recipe gives a subtle, alcoholic flavour to the ice cream. If you want a stronger hit of flavour, increase the amount to 2 tbsp.

This no-bake, Small Batch Festive Chocolate Biscut Cake is basically a Christmassy, slightly more grown-up version of Rocky Road. Made with a combination of milk and dark chocolate for the perfect combination of bitter and sweet, it also includes crumbled amaretti biscuits, roasted, salted almonds and dried cranberries. The whole thing is finished off with a drizzle of white chocolate to make the bars look super pretty on your festive table this year!

Because there’s always so much chocolate and so many sweet treats around this time of year, I developed this as a small batch recipe: it only makes 12 small pieces (though it’s pretty rich, so that’s perfect!), so you can don’t feel overwhelmed by yet another chocolate-y treat! If you’d like to make a bigger batch, feel free to scale up the recipe and use a bigger tin.

Table of Contents

• Ingredients
• Method

Ingredients

To make this festive chocolate biscuit cake, you will need the following ingredients:

• Dark, milk & white chocolate

This biscuit cake uses a combination of dark and milk chocolate, for the perfect, sweet, but not-too-sweet combination. If you prefer, you can use all dark, or all milk. You will also need a small amount of white chocolate to drizzle over the top of the bars, but this is an optional step (it just makes the bars look SO pretty!).

• Golden syrup

Golden syrup is melted with the chocolate to make the bars slightly soft and fudgy (and easier to slice!).

• Unsalted butter

Like the golden syrup, this is combined with the chocolate to keep the bars nicely fudgy and sliceable, but it also makes them extra rich. I would recommend using unsalted butter, because there are already other salty elements in the recipe— it’s still a sweet treat, after all!

• Amaretti biscuits

These are crisp, Italian almond biscuits that are often served alongside coffee. They’re readily available in supermarkets across the UK these days and they add great crunch and flavour to these bars.

• Roasted, salted almonds

To echo the almond flavour of the amaretti, I’ve used almonds in this biscuit cake (though you could substitute them with another nut (or even just more biscuits), if you prefer). Using roasted almonds helps to ensure the bars have a really nutty flavour, while the saltiness really help to balance out the sweetness of the bars.

If you only have plain almonds, you can turn them into roasted & salted almonds super easily! Dissolve a generous pinch of sea salt in 1 tsp of hot water, then toss with the almonds, until they are completely coated. Bake the almonds at 180°C for about 5 minutes (or throw them in the airfryer at the same temperature, for the same amount of time), until golden and nutty-smelling. Allow them to cool before chopping and using in the bars.

• Dried cranberries

What could be more festive than cranberries? Traditionally, biscuit cake contains raisins, but cranberries add the same chew with extra festive-ness, plus, they’re more tart than raisins, so they help to make sure these bars aren’t too sweet. I recommend using unsweetened dried cranberries, if you can find them.

• Coarse sea salt

This is optional, but I like to sprinkle a small amount of coarse sea salt over the top of the bars before they go into the fridge to set. This echoes the saltiness of the almonds and makes these bars feel extra grown-up and delicious!

Method

To make the bars, start by preparing your tin. Like with my small batch pecan bars, I’m using a 900g (2lb) loaf tin (21cm x 11cm x 7cm), but you can use any shape tin, as long as it’s a similar size. Line the tin with baking paper, so that the chocolate mixture doesn’t stick to the sides of the tin and you can remove it easily.

Next, prepare your mix-ins. First, crumble up the amaretti cookies. Aim for small chunks— too big and your bars won’t be even, too small and you won’t get that nice, crunchy texture! Amaretti cookies are quite fragile, so it shouldn’t require too much force to break them.

Chop the almonds roughly. Again, you don’t want them too big or too small (though honestly, it doesn’t really matter— the bars will still taste great, so do whatever you feel like!)

For the cranberries, just leave them whole.

Next, prepare the chocolate mixture. Place both the milk and dark chocolate, along with the butter and golden syrup into a small saucepan and set over a low heat.

Stir frequently as the chocolate and butter melts.

Once you have a smooth mixture, remove the pan from the heat. It’s important that you don’t overheat the chocolate, because it might seize (at which point you’d have to start all over again!).

Pour out about 50g of the chocolate mixture into a separate bowl. Set this aside for later, when you’ll use it to level out the top of the bars, to make them extra pretty!

To the rest of the chocolate mixture in the pan, add the crumbled amaretti cookies, the chopped almonds and the dried cranberries.

Mix everything together thoroughly, until all of the mix-ins are completely coated in the chocolate mixture.

Tip the mixture into the lined tin and spread out into an even layer. It will seem like there’s not a lot of mixture, but just spread it out evenly— because these bars are small, they don’t need to be too deep to look proportional.

Pour the reserved 50g of the chocolate mixture all over the top of the bars, and gently spread it over the surface to fill in any gaps and level everything out a little.

Now, it’s time to decorate. Drizzle some melted white chocolate all over the surface of the bars— the messier the better!

Sprinkle over some coarse sea salt while the chocolate is still wet, so that is sticks.

Put the whole tin into the fridge to firm up for at least 3 hours, or until firm enough to slice. Once it’s chilled, remove it from the tin and transfer it to a chopping board.

Once chilled, cut the biscuit cake into 12 small bars and dig in!

The bars will keep in an airtight container at a (cool) room temperature for 4-5 days, but, if your house is particularly warm, I’d recommend storing them in the fridge to prevent the chocolate from melting!

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Small Batch Festive Chocolate Biscuit Cake

This rich, grown-up version of Rocky Road contains a 50/50 blend of milk and dark chocolate, alongside crumbled amaretti cookies, salted almonds and dried cranberries. The perfect, quick and easy, no-bake recipe for Christmas!

Course Dessert, Snack

Cuisine British, Italian

Keyword almond, Amaretti, Cranberry, Dark Chocolate, Milk Chocolate, White Chocolate

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Chill Time 3 hours hours

Total Time 3 hours hours 25 minutes minutes

Servings 12 small pieces

Equipment

• 1 900g (2lb) loaf tin (21cm x 11cm x 7cm)

Ingredients

• 90 g milk chocolate, roughly chopped.
• 90 g dark chocolate, roughly chopped.
• 60 g unsalted butter
• 50 g golden syrup
• 70 g amaretti biscuits, broken up.
• 40 g roasted, salted almonds, roughly chopped.
• 30 g dried cranberries

To decorate:

• 15 g white chocolate, melted.
• Coarse sea salt, for sprinkling.

Instructions

• Line the tin with greaseproof paper and set aside.
• Place the milk and dark chocolate, unsalted butter and golden syrup into a small saucepan and set over low heat. Stir gently while the mixture melts together.
• Once the mixture is smooth and completely melted, remove from the heat immediately. Pour about 50g of the mixture into a small bowl for later.
• To the remaining chocolate mixture in the pan, add the crumbled amaretti cookies, the chopped almonds and the dried cranberries. Mix well to coat everything in the chocolate mixture.
• Tip the mixture into the prepared tin and smooth out into an even layer. Pour over the reserved chocolate mixture and smooth over to level out the surface.
• Drizzle the melted white chocolate all over the surface of the bars, then sprinkle with coarse sea salt.
• Place the bars into the fridge to chill for at least 3 hours, or until firm enough to slice. Remove from the tin and slice into 12 small pieces to serve. The bars will keep at room temperature, in an airtight container, for 4-5 days (though, if the weather is warm, I would recommend storing them in the fridge).

Table of Contents

• Choosing your Tin
• Chocolate Rice Crispy Base
• Speckled White Chocolate Cheesecake Filling
• Decorating the Cheesecake
• Make-Ahead
• No-Bake Mini Egg Cheesecake Recipe

Choosing your Tin

Because this cheesecake is set in the fridge instead of being baked, it’s super adaptable. With a baked cheesecake, the depth of the cheesecake layer will affect the baking time, so it’s trickier to adjust. With this no-bake version, you can make it whatever size, shape and depth you would like! I opted to use a 20 cm round tin for my cheesecake, which gave me a nice, tall result. However, you could also use a 23 cm round tin (with the same ingredient quantities)- this would give you a slightly flatter, more traditional cheesecake. You could even use a mini sandwich tin and make little individual cheesecakes- it’s completely up to you!

Whatever tin you choose to use, just make sure it has a removable base- otherwise you might not be able to get your cheesecake out of the tin! I prefer to use loose-bottomed tins, because I find they give a neater finish than springform tins, but you can use whatever you have on hand. You also need to make sure that the tin you are using is deep enough to hold all of the delicious filling- the one I used was 7 cm deep.

Once you have selected your tin, you need to line the base AND sides with baking paper (this will help you to get the cheesecake out later). Lightly grease the tin with a flavourless oil before pressing in the baking paper, to help it stick. Then, set the lined tin aside while you get on with making the cheesecake base!

Chocolate Rice Crispy Base

Typically, cheesecakes have their iconic Buttery Biscuit Base– that is, ground-up biscuits (usually digestives or ginger nuts), which are mixed with melted butter and pressed into the base of the tin to form a crunchy, crumbly base. Don’t get me wrong- I love a Buttery Biscuit Base. However, I wanted to do something a bit different with this cheesecake, so I opted to use a chocolate rice crispy base. Growing up, we made chocolate rice crispy nests every Easter, so they’re super nostalgic to me.

For the rice crispy base, you will need the following ingredients:

• Rice crispy cereal

I like to use rice crispy cereal, because I think it gives the best taste and it the cereal what we always used for the nests growing up, but you can use any plain cereal, really. Shredded wheat is also commonly used in the nests and would work well here, too.

• Chocolate

Because the cheesecake filling is quite sweet (it is a white chocolate cheesecake, after all!), I opted to use a 50:50 mix of milk and dark chocolate for the rice crispy base. You are absolutely welcome to use all milk chocolate, or all dark chocolate, if you would prefer, but I quite like the combination of the two here.

• Unsalted butter

Adding a small amount of butter helps to keep the base together (and makes it easier to slice through- though you will still need a large, sharp knife to slice this dessert!).

• Golden Syrup

The golden syrup works with the butter to keep the base firm, but sliceable. If you can’t find golden syrup, you could use honey (though this may affect the flavour slightly).

Once you have everything ready, the base is super quick and easy to make. Put all of the ingredients, bar the rice crispy cereal, into a heatproof bowl and melt together until completely smooth.

I do this in the microwave, in 1-minute intervals on the lowest heat setting, but you could do it over a bain-marie, if you prefer.

Once everything is smooth, mix in the rice crispy cereal, making sure every piece is completely covered in the chocolatey mixture. It’s important to cover each individual puff of rice, as this will prevent them from going soggy in the fridge.

When everything is combined, tip the mixture into the lined baking tin and smooth it out into an even layer.

At this point, I like to use the back of spoon, which I grease lightly with oil, to really compact and smooth out the base. Not only will this give a more even, professional finish, it will help the base stay together when the cheesecake is sliced.

Once you are happy with your base, put the tin into the fridge so that it can firm up while you make the cheesecake filling.

Speckled White Chocolate Cheesecake Filling

I wanted to bring some Mini Egg vibes to the cheesecake itself, so I opted to create a speckled filling, as an ode to the iconic, speckled, candy shells of the eggs. This is so easy to do, but I think it makes the cheesecake look extra special.

This no-bake cheesecake filling only requires 5 ingredients, making it super simple to whip up! You will need the following:

• White chocolate

The white chocolate is an important ingredient for a number of reasons. First and foremost, it lends its iconic, vanilla-y flavour to the cheesecake filling, making for a super delicious dessert. However, it is also vital in helping the cheesecake to set in the fridge, without the need for any eggs/baking. It also lends sweetness to the filling, which contains no additional sugar. This is great, because it ensures that the cheesecake is super smooth and silky, with no hint of graininess from undissolved sugar crystals!

• Cream cheese

Cream cheese is a standard ingredient in any cheesecake recipe. Make sure to use full-fat cream cheese, or the texture/set of the cheesecake may be affected. It’s very important that the cream cheese is at room temperature- this will ensure your finished cheesecake is super smooth and silky.

• Mascarpone

Mascarpone is an Italian cream cheese, made with cream (as opposed to whole milk). It has a creamier taste and thicker texture than regular cream cheese, which helps to make sure the cheesecake filling is velvety smooth. Using a combination of the two cheeses gives the perfect balance of tang and creaminess. Like the cream cheese, it’s very important that the mascarpone is at room temperature.

• Double cream

Cream, the third and final dairy product in this cheesecake filling, helps to make the cheesecake extra light, fluffy and super silky. If you’re in the US, use heavy cream.

• Dark chocolate

This is what gives the cheesecake its speckled appearance- by finely chopping a small amount of dark chocolate and folding it into the mixture at the last moment, you can achieve a speckled effect that not only looks great, it actually helps to temper the sweetness of the white chocolate filling as well. Make sure you chop the chocolate super finely, though, to maintain the silky smooth texture of the cheesecake as much as possible.

To make the cheesecake filling, start by melting the white chocolate. I do this in the microwave, again in 1-minute bursts on the lowest setting, but you could use a bain-marie, if you prefer. Once the chocolate is melted, allow it to cool to room temperature (about 10-15 minutes), while you prepare the other ingredients.

While the chocolate is cooling, beat together the cream cheese and mascarpone until smooth.

In a separate bowl, whisk the cream to soft peaks. Don’t over-whip it at this stage- you just want it to be slightly thickened and billowy, not necessarily holding its shape.

Once the chocolate has cooled to room temperature, mix it into the cheese mixture, until completely combined.

At this point, your mixture should be silky smooth, like in the photo above. If it’s not, then it’s likely that a) your chocolate was too warm, or b) your cheese mixture was too cold. Don’t worry though! You can fix both of these problems. if your chocolate was too warm, and your mixture has become loose and curdled, put the whole thing into the fridge to let it set back up, giving it a mix every 5 minutes or so, until it comes back together.

If your cheese mixture was too cold (i.e., you, like me, decided that you couldn’t be bothered to wait for the cheeses to come to room temperature before baking), then your mixture will probably look a little like this- a bit lumpy and super thick. This is because the cold cheese has set the white chocolate, leaving you with little chocolate lumps all through your mixture- not the vibe. Luckily, this is completely salvageable! You just need to warm the mixture very gently, until the white chocolate pieces melt back into the rest of the mixture. I did this in the microwave, in 30-second bursts on the lowest setting, stirring well in between each burst, but you could, again, use a bain-marie if you prefer. Just be sure to heat the mixture very gently when you do this- you don’t want it to get warm, just for the white chocolate to melt back into it. It only took me about 90 seconds of microwaving to bring the mixture back to a super silky texture, and it was still cool to the touch when it was done.

Once you have a smooth base (whether or not you needed to do a little bit of last-minute rescuing!), it’s time to add the cream. Start by vigorously beating in a large spoonful of the cream, to loosen the mixture.

Once that’s incorporated, add the rest of the cream and begin to gently fold it in. By folding in the cream, you’ll preserve as much of the air as possible, making the cheesecake super light and fluffy.

Just before you’ve finished folding in the cream, add in the finely chopped dark chocolate. By adding the chocolate at this point, you won’t have to over-mix the filling to incorporate it, but you also won’t be mixing the chocolate in for so long that it starts to leave streaks in the batter, ruining that lovely, speckled effect.

Once everything is fully incorporated, you can spoon the mixture into the baking tin, right on top of the chilled rice crispy base, before smoothing out the top. If, like me, you are making a taller, 20 cm cheesecake, I would recommend adding 1/3 of the mixture and smoothing it out, then the next 1/3 and smoothing that out, then the final 1/3 (and smooth (instead of just smoothing the whole lot at the end). This will help to prevent air pockets which might ruin the lovely, smooth edges of your dessert.

When everything’s smooth, put the whole thing back into the fridge to set for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.

Decorating the Cheesecake

Once the cheesecake has finished setting in the fridge, you can remove it from the tin. I like to set the tin on top of a can, then apply gentle, even pressure to both sides of the tin and push the outer frame downwards, to reveal the cheesecake. Peel off the baking paper and transfer the dessert to a serving plate.

To decorate the cheesecake, I roughly chopped some Cadbury’s Mini Eggs (I found it was easiest to ‘crush’ the eggs with the side of a large knife first, a bit like garlic- as they have a tendency to roll otherwise!) and sprinkled them around the circumference of the cheesecake, but how you finish off the dessert is up to completely you- you can arrange whole mini eggs in concentric circles, pile up a handful in the centre of the cheesecake, or even leave them off entirely, if you’re not a fan!

Make-Ahead

This is a great dessert to make in advance, because you can keep it in the refrigerator for 3-4 days and just take it out before you need to serve it! If you do plan to make it advance, I would suggest waiting to decorate it with the Mini Eggs until just before serving it. The colouring from the candy shells of the Mini Eggs can sometimes run, particularly if they are left in contact with the filling for too long, or exposed to the moisture of the fridge for a long period time of time. You could, however, chop up the Mini Eggs in advance and store them in an airtight container, at room temperature, ready to sprinkle onto the cheesecake at the last minute.

No-Bake Mini Egg Cheesecake Recipe

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No-Bake Mini Egg Cheesecake

A chocolate rice crispy mixture replaces the traditional buttery biscuit base in this seasonal, no-bake cheesecake. The white chocolate cheesecake layer is speckled with dark chocolate shavings, before being topped with chopped Cadbury's Mini Eggs for the ultimate, easy Easter dessert.

Course Dessert

Keyword Cheesecake, Chocolate, Easter, Mini Eggs

Prep Time 40 minutes minutes

Chill Time 6 hours hours

Total Time 6 hours hours 40 minutes minutes

Servings 10 people

Equipment

• 1 20cm round, deep, loose-bottomed cake tin (see Note 1).

Ingredients

• A small amount of flavourless oil, for greasing.

For the Rice Crispy Base:

• 100 g rice crispy cereal
• 75 g milk chocolate, roughly chopped.
• 75 g dark chocolate, roughly chopped.
• 50 g unsalted butter
• 2 tbsp golden syrup

For the White Chocolate Cheesecake:

• 400 g white chocolate, roughly chopped.
• 300 g full-fat cream cheese, at room temperature.
• 250 g mascarpone, at room temperature.
• 300 ml double cream
• 40 g dark chocolate, finely chopped.

To decorate:

• Cadbury's Mini Eggs, roughly chopped.

Instructions

Make the Rice Crispy Base:

• Lightly grease and fully line your chosen cake tin with baking paper, then set aside.
• Put all of the chocolate (milk and dark) into a large, heatproof bowl. Add the butter and golden syrup, then melt gently (either using a microwave on the lowest setting or over a bain-marie) until smooth.
• Once melted, tip in the rice crispy cereal and mix well until completely combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and spread out into an even layer. Lightly oil the back of a spoon and use to compress the mixture to form a solid base, then place into the fridge to chill while you make the cheesecake filling.

Make the Cheesecake Filling:

• Begin by melting the white chocolate (I do this in a microwave, in 1 minute bursts on the lowest setting, but you could use a bain-marie, if you prefer). Once melted, allow to cool to room temperature (about 10-15 minutes).
• In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and mascarpone together until well-combined. Add the cooled white chocolate and mix together until smooth and silky.
• In a separate bowl, whip the double cream to soft peaks. Add a small amount of cream to the cheese mixture and beat well to incorporate- this will loosen the mixture. Then, add the rest of the cream mixture and fold in until almost combined.
• Add the dark chocolate shavings to the bowl. Finish folding in the cream, incorporating the chocolate at the same time.
• Remove the tin with the rice crispy base from the fridge and spoon the cheesecake filling on top. Smooth out the filling using the back of a knife/a spatula, then return to the fridge to set for at least 6 hours, or overnight.

Decorate the Cheesecake:

• Once the cheesecake has set, carefully remove it from the tin and transfer it to a serving plate. Decorate with the chopped Cadbury's Mini Eggs, then serve.

Notes

1. Using a 20 cm cake tin will yield quite a tall cheesecake- like the one in the pictures. Your tin needs to be deep enough to allow for this- the one I used was 7 cm deep. If you would prefer a slightly thinner cheesecake, use a 23 cm cake tin instead. 

Make-Ahead:

If you want to make this cheesecake ahead of time, you can keep it in the fridge for 3-4 days. I would, however, recommend decorating it just before serving, to prevent the colour from the Mini Egg shells from transferring to the cheesecake. 

Recipe adapted from BBC Good Food.

Today’s post is a recipe for homemade toffee popcorn. It would be perfect as a last minute gift or just as a super tasty snack to get you through the stresses of the build up to Christmas Day!

I used to have a go-to recipe for toffee popcorn that was SO reliable- it was great! However, I think there’s been some sort of toffee popcorn apocalypse- over the last year or so, all the recipes online seem to have been updated to include baking soda, which I am sure the recipe that I initially used did not contain. To make matters worse, I just can’t get the baking soda recipes to work for me, so there’s been a toffee popcorn-shaped hole in my life for a while now. I know, I know, why didn’t I write down the recipe I used at the time? All I can say is that I was a fool. Nevertheless, we must move forward, so, of course, I have spent the last month or so trying to figure out how I made that original recipe. After multiple failed attempts, I think I might just have cracked it. In fact, I think it might be even better than the original…

Table of Contents

• Some Thoughts on Baking Soda
• Equipment
• Ingredients
• Making the Toffee Popcorn
• Storing the Toffee Popcorn
• Final Thoughts
• Recipe

Some Thoughts on Baking Soda

As I mentioned in the introduction, I haven’t been able to make any of the online recipes I have tried for toffee/caramel popcorn work. The finished popcorn always ends up super matte and grainy, which is not at all what I wanted- I wanted my toffee popcorn to be shiny, smooth and crunchy.

The updated recipes all seem to include baking soda in their popcorn recipes- apparently, this is to help the toffee coat the popcorn, but I have seen other people say it helps the popcorn to forma fine, crispy coating, and even that it actually helps it to become shiny and glossy. I… disagree. After a good number of attempts using it, I just feel that the texture it creates (the toffee bubbles up like honeycomb when it is added) is not what I’m looking for- in all of my attempts, it has reduced that shiny look and smooth mouthfeel significantly. Perhaps it is a sacrilegious thing to do in this day and age, but I have not included any baking soda in this recipe and, honestly, I think it’s better for it!

Equipment

• A large, heavy-bottomed pan (with a lid!).

In the spirit of honesty (because at Christmas you tell the truth), I always use two large heavy-bottomed pans for this recipe, because I am much too lazy to be washing and drying up the pan mid-bake. You can totally get away with one though- just make the popcorn in it first, then allow the pan to cool before washing it out. Dry the pan thoroughly, then make the toffee in it. Heavy-bottomed pans are best for sugar work, because they help everything to melt evenly.

• Silicone spatula

For stirring the toffee and tossing the popcorn (though at the stage, I actually find it using a fish slice as well, for maximum tossing action!). I like to use a silicone spatula, because they can withstand the high heat of the toffee AND they make it super easy to scrape the toffee out of the pan.

• A large, rimmed baking tray (fully lined with foil and greased!)

You need to bake the toffee popcorn to help cover it in the toffee and so that it get crispy, so you need to have a prepped baking tray at the ready for this. Because the toffee popcorn is so sugary (read: sticky), I like to line the tray completely with foil, then grease it generously with oil, to stop the popcorn from sticking. Make sure to use a rimmed baking tray to prevent any sticky sugar spillages in your oven!

Ingredients

• Popcorn kernels

I make homemade popcorn on the stove for this recipe. All you need for this is popcorn kernels and oil- it’s really simple!

• Oil

You need oil to make popcorn on the stovetop. Use a light, flavourless oil like sunflower oil or groudnut oil for best results (though, obviously, do not give this popcorn to anyone with a nut allergy, if you opt for groundnut oil!). You’ll also need a little extra oil to grease the foil-lined baking tray.

• Unsalted butter

I prefer to use unsalted butter to make the toffee coating, because then I can control the level of salt in the finished popcorn. If you only have salted butter, just leave out the sea salt.

• Light brown soft sugar

Using brown sugar gives you that caramel-y, toffee-y taste with much less effort. I wouldn’t substitute caster sugar/granulated sugar for this, because it will affect both the texture and the taste.

• Golden syrup

Toffee typically contains some form of inverted sugar, which helps to give it the right texture and to prevent the sugar from crystallising. I’ve used golden syrup here, because it’s readily accessible in the UK and really adds to the caramel-y flavour of the popcorn, but you could use glucose syrup or corn syrup (if you’re in the US), if you prefer. Just be aware that your toffee popcorn will probably end up a little paler in colour if you use one of these substitutions.

• Flaky sea salt

I like to use flaky sea salt for this recipe because I think it has a better flavour. After measuring the salt, I crush it between my fingers before adding it to the hot toffee- that way, it disperses more evenly throughout the popcorn. If you would prefer to use regular table salt, I would halve the amount of salt listed.

• Vanilla extract

Just to flavour the toffee- it doesn’t necessarily end up tasting of vanilla, but the extract really helps to draw out all of the other flavours and make this popcorn super moreish.

Making the Toffee Popcorn

Start by preheating the oven to 150°C. Set the foil-lined, greased baking tray nearby, for later.

Start by making the popcorn. Add the oil to a large, heavy-based saucepan over medium-high heat. Drop a few kernels of popcorn in and cover with the lid.

Gently shake the pan as you wait for those kernels to pop. Once they do, lift the lid and tip in the rest of the kernels. Cover with the lid immediately and shake the pan every now and then to coat all of the kernels in the oil and stop them from burning.

Once the popcorn starts popping, shake the pan more vigorously, to prevent the popped kernels from burning. Keep the pan over the heat, shaking frequently, until the popping slows to a few seconds between pops. At this point, remove the pan from the heat and tip the popcorn out onto the greased and foil-lined baking tray.

Once the popcorn has cooled slightly, go through and pick out any un-popped kernels now to save your teeth later on! These can be discarded.

Now you can make the toffee. Place the butter, brown sugar and golden syrup into a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, then put the pan over medium heat.

Stir frequently while the butter melts into the sugar.

Once melted, increase the heat to medium-high to bring the mixture to the boil. Once the mixture has come to a boil, turn the heat down to low and allow to bubble, undisturbed, for 10 minutes.

When the toffee has 3 minutes of cooking time remaining, place the baking tray (with the popcorn) into the preheated oven to warm up. This will prevent the toffee from cooling too quickly, making it easier to cover the popcorn.

After 10 minutes, the toffee should be a deep amber colour. At this point, remove the pan from the heat and stir through the flaky sea salt and vanilla extract.

Remove the tray with the popcorn from the oven, and pour over all of the toffee mixture. Working quickly, use two spatulas (or, in my case, a spatula and a fish slice) to toss the popcorn and toffee together- try to coat the kernels as much as possible, but don’t worry too much- you will be tossing the popcorn more later. The toffee will start to cool down very quickly, so, when it gets difficult to toss, stop and put the tray back into the oven.

Bake the popcorn for 20 minutes, removing the tray from the oven to toss the popcorn in the toffee every 5 minutes or so. The warmth of the oven will remelt the toffee, making it easier to toss it together with the kernels.

Once the toffee popcorn has finished baking, it should be a deep golden colour with an even coating of toffee. Allow it cool slightly on the tray before eating/storing. I find it easier to break the popcorn up when it is still ever so slightly warm. As it cools, it will start to stick to the foil- you can still get it off, but it requires a bit more prising!

Storing the Toffee Popcorn

Toffee popcorn keeps for much longer than regular popcorn, because the outer layer toffee protects the popcorn underneath. You still need to store it in an airtight container though, to keep it fresh for as long as possible. Stored in a cool, dry place, the popcorn will last for about a week.

If you want to give the popcorn as a gift, I would recommend packaging it up into bags on the same day that you plan to give it and making sure the bags are tightly sealed with a twist tie. Alternatively, you could fill an old jam jar with some of the popcorn, which would keep it fresher for longer.

Final Thoughts

It was a bit of a trial working out the recipe, but I’m so glad I put in the work- I really think it’s perfect now! The finished popcorn is so moreish- it has the perfect balance of sweet and salty and it looks jsut how I wanted: shiny andgolden sheen makes it feel so festive.

Let me know if you try this recipe in the comments below- I’d love to hear about it!

Gemma

xxx

Recipe

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Toffee Popcorn

Sweet and salty, this homemade toffee popcorn makes a perfect last-minute Christmas gift, but it is also great as a tasty snack, alongside a Christmas film!

Course Snack

Keyword Caramel, Popcorn, Toffee

Prep Time 40 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 10

Ingredients

For the popcorn:

• 1 tbsp flavourless oil, such as sunflower or groundnut, plus extra for greasing.
• 80 g popcorn kernels

For the toffee:

• 100 g unsalted butter
• 220 g brown sugar
• 160 g golden syrup
• 1/4 tsp flaky sea salt
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

• Line a large, rimmed baking tray with foil and grease well with oil. Preheat the oven to 150°C.

Make the popcorn:

• Place the 1 tbsp of oil into a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 3 popcorn kernels, then cover with a lid and wait, shaking gently every now and then, until all three of the kernels have popped. At this point, quickly add the rest of the kernels, replace the lid and shake frequently as the popcorn begins to pop. When the popping slows to several seconds between pops, remove the pan from the heat. Tip the popcorn onto the baking tray and spread out into an even layer. Once cool, pick out and discard any un-popped kernels, then set the tray aside while you make the toffee.

Make the toffee:

• Place the butter, brown sugar and golden syrup into a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir frequently until the butter has melted, then increase the heat and bring the mixture up to a boil. Turn the heat down to low and allow the toffee to simmer undisturbed for 10 minutes, until it is a deep golden colour.
• When the toffee has 3 minutes left of cooking time, place the baking tray, with the popcorn still on it, into the oven to warm up. This will make tossing the popcorn and the toffee together easier.
• When the toffee is ready, remove the pan from the heat and add the flaky sea salt and vanilla, stirring to incorporate. Be careful, because the mixture will bubble up a little- keep stirring until the bubbles subside and a smooth mixture forms. Remove the tray of popcorn from the oven and pour the toffee over the top. Toss quickly with two spatulas to coat the popcorn.
• Place the popcorn into the preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes to ensure the popcorn is evenly coated. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before breaking up the popcorn with your hands (this is easiest when the popcorn is still ever so slightly warm). Stored in an airtight container at room temperature, the toffee popcorn will keep for about a week.

When I tell you that this recipe has been years in the making, I truly mean it. I literally have a document on my laptop called ‘Honeycomb Diaries’ that is just an extensive list of notes and records of different attempts and alterations, as well the super scientific inferences that I have drawn from those experiments (e.g. the extremely accurate ‘too shatter-y’), from the past 3 years (does that mean that mastering the art of honeycomb was my lockdown project? The banana breads of this world must feel very slighted). I just couldn’t seem to get honeycomb right. I have tried different recipes, different sugars, different tins, different methods, different EVERYTHING (at least it feels that way). Now, 3 years later, I have finally developed a honeycomb recipe that I am happy with- one that works reliably and isn’t insanely complicated.

Today, I’m sharing my hard-earned honeycomb expertise with you. I hope your blood sugar is ready.

Table of Contents

• Ingredients
• Equipment
• Making the Honeycomb
• Storing the Honeycomb
• Recipe

Ingredients

For this honeycomb, you only need 4 ingredients (5, admittedly, if you intend to dip your honeycomb in chocolate, like I have done):

• Caster sugar

Don’t use granulated sugar, because it will take longer to dissolve, which could throw off the whole process. If you’re in the US, I would recommend using superfine sugar. Don’t use brown sugar- it has too much moisture and will affect the flavour of the finished honeycomb. You can use either white or golden caster sugar for this recipe (I used golden here).

• Golden syrup

One of the two liquid sugar ingredients in this recipe, golden syrup helps to give the honeycomb a deeper colour and its characteristic caramel-y flavour.

• Glucose syrup

While some recipes use all golden syrup, I like to use half golden syrup, half glucose syrup. Using all golden syrup can make the finished product a little sticky, so substituting half of it for glucose syrup makes for a more stable honeycomb. Using half glucose syrup will make the honeycomb a little paler- it will look a little anaemic at first, but it does darken up a little as it sets- you’ll basically end up with a similar internal colour to a Cadbury’s Crunchie, which I feel is the ultimate goal for all honeycomb, right?

These days, you can purchase glucose syrup at most supermarkets (usually in the baking aisle). Because I have been making so much honeycomb recently (see aforementioned Honeycomb Diaries), I like to buy mine in larger quantities online- I purchased this 325g tub of PME liquid glucose from The Cake Decorating Company (my go-to for specialist baking equipment/ingredients).

• Bicarbonate of soda

Bicarbonate of soda is what gives the honeycomb its characteristic spongey texture and appearance- the bicarb reacts with the hot sugar to form lots of air bubbles.

Equipment

You will need the following equipment for this recipe:

• Large, heavy-bottomed saucepan

The hot sugar will bubble up significantly once you’ve added the bicarbonate of soda. Make sure you use a large pan so that the sugar doesn’t bubble over the top and burn you.

It’s important to use a heavy-bottomed saucepan when working with sugar/caramel to ensure that everything heats up evenly- otherwise you might burn some spots before others have melted!

• Sugar thermometer

While you can get specially-made candy thermometers that clip onto the side of your saucepan, I prefer to use a handheld probe thermometer, like the one above, because I often make small quantities of toffee and find it easier to accurately read the temperature with them. Use whichever you prefer, but you do need some sort of sugar thermometer for this recipe, because you need to be super precise. You can find thermometers relatively cheaply online and you can use them for a number of recipes, so they are definitely a worthwhile investment.

• Sieve

I like to sieve the bicarbonate of soda after I have measured it out, to make sure it incorporates into the sugar properly. You want to avoid pockets of bicarbonate of soda, if you can, because they will be unpleasant to eat- sieving the bicarb and whisking it in really well helps to prevent those pockets.

• Heatproof whisk

I like to use a whisk to mix the bicarbonate of soda into the sugar, to make sure that it is thoroughly combined. The toffee will be very hot, though, so the whisk must be heatproof- either a metal or silicon whisk will be fine.

• Heatproof spatula

The toffee can get a bit sticky, so you’ll want to work quickly and have a good spatula at the ready for transferring it from the pan to the baking tin. Like the whisk, make sure your spatula can withstand the hot temperature of the toffee.

• 20cm square baking tin, lined with greaseproof paper

I like to use a tin for my toffee because I think it helps it to retain some height (though the toffee will always collapse a little bit as it cools- this is normal). Some recipes call for pouring the hot toffee onto a lined baking tray to cool, but I find my toffee ends up super thin if I do this. You want to make sure you use the right size tin though, because it’s important that the toffee fills the tin, but isn’t too deep, or it might be more likely to collapse. For the quantities listed in this recipe, I find a 20cm square tin is the perfect size. If you were to halve the recipe, I would recommend using a regular loaf tin (about half the size of a 20cm square tin), to achieve the same results.

It’s very important that you line the tin completely– sugar is inherently very sticky, and you don’t want your honeycomb to get stuck in the pan.

Making the Honeycomb

Honeycomb is one of those recipes where everything happens very quickly at the end of the process. Because of this, it’s important to get all of your ingredients and equipment laid out and ready before you start.

To start with, set the lined baking tin near the hob, so that it is easily accessible when it comes to pouring out the hot toffee.

Sift the bicarbonate of soda into a small bowl/measuring cup. Set that near the hob as well, so that it is at hand to tip into the hot sugar later.

Make sure your thermometer, whisk and spatula are all at hand, then place the caster sugar, golden syrup and glucose syrup into the saucepan. Put the saucepan over a medium-low heat and allow to melt. You can give it a brief mix if needed, to help it melt evenly, but try not to stir too much, to prevent any crystallisation.

Keep the pan over the heat as the sugar begins to bubble. Once the caster sugar has dissolved, make sure to keep an eye on the temperature of the toffee. When the syrup reaches 153°C (it won’t be overly dark at this stage, so it’s important to go by the temperature, rather than the appearance of the syrup), take the pan off the heat and quickly add the sifted bicarbonate of soda- whisking vigorously to incorporate it.

The toffee will bubble up aggressively, so be careful. Once the bicarbonate of soda is incorporated stop whisking and immediately pour the toffee into your lined tin, using a spatula to scrape down the saucepan as best as you can (though the toffee will already be setting, so you won’t be able to salvage every last bit).

Allow the honeycomb to cool in the tin- it might collapse slightly (this is normal!), but it should still retain some height and fluffiness.

Once it’s just about cool (about 10-15 minutes), remove it from the tin and break it up into chunks, using either your hands or a sharp knife.

If you let the toffee cool completely before doing this, it will be more prone to shattering- leaving you with a messy rubble of honeycomb, as opposed to tasty chunks. If you don’t let it cool enough, the toffee will bend rather than break. Once the toffee has cooled enough to touch, gently press the surface in a few places- if there are any soft areas, the toffee is not cool enough yet.

Storing the Honeycomb

Honeycomb is exceptionally sensitive to moisture so it’s very important to store it properly. It will start absorbing moisture from the air pretty much as soon as it cools down, so you need to work quickly (and try not to make they honeycomb in a humid kitchen- don’t be boiling some pasta at the same time or anything!). There are two things you can do to help your homemade honeycomb keep for longer:

• Store it in an airtight container

As soon as you’ve broken up the honeycomb, transfer it to an airtight container, lined with greaseproof paper. Like this, the honeycomb should last for a few days (more if you are super careful), as long as it is stored in a cool, dry place (not the fridge!). If any moisture gets in, or your container is not completely airtight, the honeycomb will gradually start melting, which is not what you want.

• Dip the honeycomb pieces in chocolate

Dipping your honeycomb pieces in chocolate will seal the sugar off from the air, meaning that the moisture cannot get in and melt the toffee. If done correctly, this method is much more effective than storing the pieces in an airtight container and your toffee will keep for significantly longer. If you do this, make sure you cover the entire piece of honeycomb in a layer of chocolate- any exposed toffee and it will still be able to absorb moisture. Also, don’t put the chocolate-dipped honeycomb into the fridge to set, just dip the honeycomb (ideally with tempered chocolate- I didn’t temper mine and, while they did set at room temperature eventually, they took a while and the chocolate has bloomed, so this is definitely a case of do as I say not as I do. You can find my guide to tempering here). Once you’ve dipped the honeycomb, leave the pieces to set at room temperature.

I like to use two forks to dip the honeycomb pieces, tapping the fork on the side of the container to remove any excess chocolate before transferring the dipped honeycomb to a baking sheet to harden. Once dipped, the honeycomb should last at room temperature, but it’s better to store it in an airtight container, just in case.

I hope you’ll try making some honeycomb for yourself- it looks super fancy and complicated, but, if you have the right ingredients/equipment, it’s really not too tricky and comes together super quickly. Let me know if you give this recipe a go- I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Gemma

xxx

Recipe

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Honeycomb

Also known as Cinder Toffee or Hokey Pokey, this 4-ingredient, crispy-crunchy toffee can be left plain or dipped in chocolate for extra deliciousness (and easier storage).

Course Snack

Keyword Chocolate, Cinder Toffee, Glucose syrup, Golden syrup, Hokey Pokey, Honeycomb, Sponge Toffee, Sugarpaste daisy

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 1 20cm square tin

Equipment

• 20cm square tin, fully lined with greaseproof paper
• Large, heavy-bottomed saucepan
• candy thermometer (see Note 1).
• Heatproof whisk
• Heatproof spatula
• Sieve

Ingredients

• 160 g caster sugar
• 80 g golden syrup
• 80 g liquid glucose
• 2 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

To dip (optional):

• 400 g chocolate (I used milk chocolate, but you could use dark if you prefer).

Instructions

• Begin by setting out all of your equipment, so that everything is at hand for when thing start happening quickly towards the end of the process- make sure the lined tin, thermometer, whisk and spatula are all at hand, near the hob.
• Sieve the bicarbonate of soda into a small bowl or measuring cup. Set it near the hob, so it is easily accessible. Add the sugar, golden syrup and glucose syrup to the saucepan and set over medium-low heat.
• Allow the sugar to melt, giving it a gentle stir, if needed, to help it melt evenly. Try not to stir too much, though, or it might crystallise. Once the sugar has melted, keep an eye on the temperature using the candy thermometer and allow the mixture to bubble away until it reaches 153°C.
• At this point, you need to work very quickly. Remove the pan from the heat and immediately add the bicarbonate of soda. Vigorously whisk in the bicarb- the sugar will froth up violently, so be very careful. Once all of the bicarb has been mixed in, quickly tip the mixture into the lined tin, using a spatula to scrape the sides (don't worry if you can't get it all- just try to get most of it). Leave the honeycomb until it is just about cool, about 10-15 minutes, (see Note 2)- it should be hard to the touch- then break up into pieces using your hands.
• At this point, the honeycomb can either be eaten immediately or transferred to an airtight container, where it should keep for a few days (as long as it is not exposed to any moisture). To prolong the shelf-life of the honeycomb (and make it extra tasty), you can dip it into chocolate. Melt and temper the chocolate, then use 2 forks to dip each piece of honeycomb into it, making sure that the honeycomb is completely covered. Transfer the dipped toffee to a baking tray, lined with greaseproof paper and allow to set at room temperature until the chocolate has hardened. Store in an airtight container until ready to eat.

Notes

1. I like to use a digital probe thermometer, for a more accurate reading and because it is easier to use for smaller quantities, but you could also use a more traditional candy thermometer, which clips onto the side of the saucepan, if you prefer.
2. It is easier to get proper chunks (as opposed to a messy rubble) of honeycomb if you break it up when it is just about cool- not completely cold yet. Obviously, do not touch the toffee if it is still hot, but, once you can touch it in a few places and it is hard, take it out of the tin, peel off the greaseproof paper and start breaking it up, working from the outside in (the centre will take the longest to firm up). If the toffee bends, rather than breaks, give it a little bit longer to set. As a bonus, it will be easier to remove the greaseproof paper when the toffee is not quite cold yet, so you shouldn’t have any trouble with the paper sticking to the toffee if you use this method. 

Enter: my Salted Caramel Ice Cream. A super smooth, creamy & rich ice cream, laced with sweet, salty, toffee-y goodness AND rippled with gooey, chewy, homemade caramel. I mean… please. It’s perfect scooped into a cone or bowl, layered into an ice cream sundae, or, as the days get colder, dolloped on top of warm apple pies and sticky toffee puddings (okay, yep, maybe I am ready for autumn now).

Also, I am yet to master the art of ice cream photography (it melts SO QUICKLY 🙁 I mean… I know that’s kind of the point, but it still feels a bit unnecessary). Anyway, I promise that all the photos are of the exact same batch of ice cream, even though they seem to be completely different colours… I just made the mistake of changing my position while I was taking the photographs. Ah well, you live and learn, I guess?

Let’s just get into it, shall we?

Table of Contents

• Ingredients
• Equipment
• Making Salted Caramel
• Making the Ice Cream Base
• Churning the Ice Cream & Finishing Touches
• Recipe

Ingredients

• Caster sugar

Sugar is a standard ingredient in any ice cream recipe, but we’ll be using some of it to make a caramel sauce as well. The type of sugar you use makes a difference- caster sugar comes in two varieties: golden and white. In general, when making caramel, it’s best to use white caster sugar, because it gives you more control over the caramelisation process. You won’t be able to heat golden caster sugar for as long before it burns, making the process a little more finicky, but it will have a lovely depth of flavour. For this recipe, I used golden caster sugar and took it off the heat as soon as it had melted, for that dark, nutty flavour, but you can use white caster sugar, if you prefer, and just give it more time to melt and caramelise fully.

• Butter

A rogue ingredient for a typical ice cream base, but a necessity for a caramel sauce! You only need a tiny bit, but it gives the sauce a rich, smooth texture.

• Double cream

Much like the sugar, double cream is a necessity for ice cream, but it’s also a necessity for caramel sauce! The cream takes what would otherwise be a brittle, translucent golden sugar into a silky smooth, opaque caramel sauce. In other words, it’s the best bit.

• Flaky sea salt

I mean, what is salted caramel without salt? For the best flavour, you want to use a good quality flaky sea salt. If you have to use table salt, halve the amount- otherwise it will be way too salty, even for salted caramel!

• Milk

As always, I use half milk, half cream for my ice cream base, which gives it a perfectly smooth, creamy texture. Ideally, you should use a full fat milk, but I almost always use skimmed milk and it works out fine.

• Egg yolks

You only need the yolks for this recipe, so you can either use the egg whites for another recipe (such as my macarons!) or freeze them for another day.

Equipment

• Ice cream maker

To make a custard-based ice cream (like this one!) at home, you need a good ice cream maker. I use this KitchenAid attachment and I love it. It can be a little fiddly to set up, but once you get it going it works really well. Just make sure to pour the ice cream base in with the machine running (it will be a bit messy, but you can easily clean it up after. Otherwise, the ice cream will freeze to the bowl before you have a chance to churn it and you run the risk of damaging the machine). You have to freeze the attachment in advance (overnight!), as is the case for most ice cream makers, so don’t forget to plan ahead. When it comes to churning your ice cream, most machines will come with their own set of specific instructions. Using the KitchenAid attachment, I churn mine for about 20 minutes and it comes out perfectly.

• Fine mesh sieve

This recipe calls for you to strain your ice cream base before thickening it. The reason for this is that, even though you will be whisking constantly as you add the hot cream to the eggs, you can still sometimes get some pesky, unincorporated bits of egg that have cooked slightly from the heat of the cream. Straining the mixture through a (heatproof!) fine mesh sieve removes those pesky eggy bits and leaves you with a super smooth ice cream.

• Electric whisk

I like to use an electric hand whisk when I make ice cream, but you can absolutely use a stand mixer, fitted with a whisk attachment. You’ll need some sort of electric whisk though, because the egg yolk/sugar mixture needs to be whisked for a while in order to reach the required ‘ribbon’ stage.

Making Salted Caramel

Confession: for years, I considered caramel to be my baking nemesis. I tried, over and over, and I could never seem to get it right! Eventually, I realised my problem. I was using golden caster sugar!

Caster sugar comes in two main forms: golden and white. Golden caster sugar is unrefined, so, unlike white caster sugar, it retains some of the molasses, giving it a slightly more caramel-y taste and a darker tone. Because of this, golden caster sugar caramelises much more quickly than white caster sugar and, in recipes that are expecting you to use white caster sugar, it may burn before the desired temperature is reached. I find that you can heat it up just enough to melt it, but leaving it on the heat any longer than that will leave you with a bitter, burnt caramel. In general then, for most caramel recipes, you’ll want to use white caster sugar. It will give you much more control over the caramelisation process and most recipes are written with white caster sugar in mind. Having said that, I did make this recipe with golden caster sugar, and it worked! It’s actually quicker than using white caster sugar, because you take it off the heat as soon as it has melted, and it lends the ice cream a lovely, almost nutty, flavour. It does mean you have to keep a closer eye on your caramel though, because you have to make sure the sugar has completely melted, but take it off as soon as it has, so that it doesn’t burn. If you’re using white caster sugar, the sugar will melt and then begin to caramelise, giving you more time/control over the finished colour of the caramel. All this to say, then, that you can use either of the two sugars, but you’ll need to adjust your caramel-making process slightly depending on the sugar you choose.

Once you’ve got your knowledge of sugar differences down, the caramel-making process is actually pretty straightforward. For this recipe, we’ll be starting with a dry caramel (i.e. straight sugar, with no added water).

• Make your dry caramel

Put all of the sugar into a large, heavy-based saucepan (the caramel will bubble up a lot later, so make sure you have plenty of room in the pan). Put the pan over a medium-low heat and allow the sugar to melt. Try not to mix it too much, because that can cause the sugar to crystallise, but you can move it around a little bit, to help it melt evenly.

Once the sugar has melted, don’t stir it! If you need to move the sugar, give the pan a gentle swirl. You want the sugar to reach a nice, deep golden colour- if you’re using golden caster sugar, the caramel will probably reach this stage as soon as it has melted. If you’re using white caster sugar, keep the pan over the heat and allow it to bubble until the desired shade has been reached.

• Remove from the heat and add the butter

Once the sugar has reached a deep, golden shade, take the pan off the heat and add in the butter (it will bubble up a bit here, so watch out for the steam!). Whisk the caramel vigorously to make sure the butter is fully incorporated.

• Return to the heat and add the cream

Place the pan back onto the medium-low heat, and, whisking constantly, add the cream in a slow, steady stream. The caramel will bubble up a lot, so be careful, but just keep whisking until all of the cream has been incorporated. Then, allow the caramel to bubble away over the heat, undisturbed, for a further minute.

• Remove from the heat and add the salt

After 1 minute, remove the caramel from the heat. Add in the flaky sea salt, and stir to distribute it evenly. With that, your caramel is done! Allow it to cool a little in the pan (it will be super hot at this point!), before working with it. For this recipe, you’ll want to transfer 2 tbsp of it at this stage to a heatproof container and place that into the fridge for later. The rest will be used to make the ice cream base.

This recipe makes about 7 tbsp of caramel sauce. After reserving 2 tbsp of it for drizzling later, you’ll be left with 5 tbsp- exactly how much you need for the ice cream base.

Making the Ice Cream Base

Once you have your caramel sauce made, you can get on with making the ice cream base.

• Heat up the cream, milk and remaining caramel sauce

Start by making a hot cream mixture to temper the eggs. Usually, I add straight caster sugar to the cream and milk, but we’ll be substituting that with our caramel sauce in this recipe. Place all the ingredients into a saucepan (it would be helpful to use a pan that has a spout, as we will be pouring from this saucepan later!) and set over a low heat. Stir frequently and allow the mixture to come to just below a boil. Your caramel sauce will inevitably have firmed up a bit before you start, but don’t worry! As the milk/cream mixture heats up, the caramel will melt right down, leaving you with a smooth, golden cream.

• While the cream mixture heats up, whisk the egg yolks and the sugar

While the cream mixture is heating up, you need to whisk the egg yolks with the caster sugar, until they are fully combined and have reached the ‘ribbon’ stage. At this point, the mixture should be thick, pale and significantly more voluminous- you should be able to draw a complete figure of 8 with the whisk before the ‘ribbon’ settles back into the rest of the mixture.

• Add the hot milk to the egg mixture

Usually, I prefer to loosen the eggs with a slightly cooler cream mixture before adding the hot liquid. However, because of the caramel in the cream mixture, it’s best to use it while it’s hot. To make sure you don’t accidentally cook the eggs, pour the hot milk into the egg/sugar mixture in a slow, steady stream while whisking constantly. Only stop whisking when all of the cream mixture has been incorporated.

• Strain the ice cream base back into the saucepan

Despite the constant whisking, there will inevitably be a few pesky bits of egg that got a little… cooked when you added the hot cream mixture. By straining the ice cream base as you transfer it back into the saucepan, you can remove any impurities, leaving you with a silky smooth custard base.

• Thicken the custard

Place the saucepan over a medium-low heat and, stirring constantly with a spatula, allow it to thicken (this will take about 8-10 minutes). When it’s ready, it should coat the back of the spatula.

• Place the custard into the fridge to chill

Transfer the thickened custard to a jug and cover the surface directly with clingfilm to prevent the custard from forming a skin. Place the jug into the fridge and allow it to chill for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight (you want it to be super cold!), before churning it.

Churning the Ice Cream & Finishing Touches

Once your custard base is super cold, you can churn the ice cream, as per your ice cream maker’s instructions. Using the KitchenAid attachment, this usually takes me about 20 minutes, but this will vary based on your machine. When it’s ready, your ice cream will be thick and creamy.

It’s worth reiterating at this stage: you must pour the base into the ice cream maker with the mixer on. Otherwise, the ice cream will freeze onto the bowl of the machine, leaving you with ruined ice cream and potentially damaging your machine. Trust me, been there. Make sure the mixer is running!

While the ice cream is churning, you need to warm up the reserved 2 tbsp of caramel sauce. I do this in the microwave (it took about 1 minute on the lowest setting, with intermittent stirring), but you can do it in a small saucepan over a low heat if you prefer. Just warm it up enough so that it is pourable- don’t let it bubble, or it will affect the finished texture!

Once your ice cream has churned, you need to transfer it to a freezer-proof container, ready for a final freeze. At this point, you can drizzle over the caramel sauce, so that the finished ice cream is rippled with gooey caramel. The caramel will set almost immediately when it hits the frozen ice cream, so try to drizzle it evenly over the surface.

After that, you just need to allow the ice cream to firm up in the freezer for at least 3 hours before you can tuck in an enjoy it! Once frozen, the ice cream will keep for up to 3 months in the freezer.

I’d love to hear what you think of this ice cream if you give it a try. I love this one- I think it might be my favourite ice cream that I’ve made to date!

Gemma

xxx

Recipe

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Salted Caramel Ice Cream

A homemade ice cream, featuring the perfect combination of sweet (but not too sweet!) & salty- ideal for summer sundaes or served alongside warm winter desserts.

Course Dessert, Snack

Keyword Caramel, Ice cream, Salted caramel

Prep Time 2 hours hours

Freeze + Chill Time 6 hours hours

Total Time 8 hours hours

Servings 8 big scoops

Equipment

• ice cream maker

Ingredients

For the salted caramel sauce:

• 90 g golden caster sugar (see Note 1)
• 35 g unsalted butter
• 60 ml double cream
• 1/4 tsp flaky sea salt

For the ice cream:

• 240 ml double cream
• 300 ml milk
• 50 g caster sugar
• 3 egg yolks

Instructions

• The day before you want to churn your ice cream, place the bowl of your ice cream maker into the freezer.

For the salted caramel sauce:

• Put the sugar into a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook over medium heat, swirling the pan every now and then, until sugar has just melted and is a deep, golden colour (see Note 1).
• Remove the saucepan from the heat and add the butter. Whisk vigorously until butter is melted and fully incorporated, then return to the heat.
• Add cream to the pan in a slow, steady stream, while whisking constantly. Once all cream is incorporated, stop whisking and allow to bubble, undisturbed, for 1 minute.
• Remove caramel sauce from the heat and stir in the salt. Allow caramel to cool slightly, then transfer 2 tbsp of the sauce to a heatproof container, cover and place in the fridge for later. Keep rest to use in ice cream base.

For the ice cream:

• Place the double cream, milk and remaining caramel sauce into a medium saucepan. Place over low heat, stirring frequently, until caramel has melted into milk/cream and the whole mixture reaches just below a boil.
• While the cream mixture is heating, place the sugar and egg yolks into a large, heatproof bowl. Using an electric whisk, beat until the mixture is thick, pale and fluffy (the 'ribbon' stage).
• When the cream mixture has reached just below a boil, with the mixer on, add it in a steady stream to the egg mixture. Mix until incorporated, then pour through a heatproof, fine mesh sieve back into the saucepan.
• Return the saucepan to a medium-low heat. Stir the custard with a heatproof spatula as it heats up, until it becomes thick and glossy- about 8-10 minutes. Pour the custard into a heatproof container, cover the surface with clingfilm and allow to cool to room temperature before placing into the fridge to chill for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight.
• When the custard is thoroughly cold, churn it according to your ice cream maker's instructions. Using the KitchenAid attachment, this takes around 15-20 minutes.
• While the ice cream is churning, gently heat the reserved caramel sauce. I did this in the microwave (about 1 minute on the lowest setting), but you can do it in a saucepan if you prefer. Stir the sauce well to ensure it is smooth and evenly melted.
• When your ice cream has finished churning, transfer it to a freezer-proof container. Smooth out the ice cream, then drizzle the warmed caramel sauce evenly over the top. Place into the freezer to firm up for at least 3 hours before consuming. The ice cream will keep in the freezer for 3 months.

Notes

1. The type of caster sugar you use will make a difference! I find that golden caster sugar gives the caramel a lovely, deep flavour, but you have to be more careful with it- it will turn golden much quicker, so take it off the heat and add the butter as soon as all the sugar has melted. If you’re using white caster sugar, you’ll have a little bit more leeway and more control over the colour of your caramel- it will require a bit more time over the heat after it has melted to turn a deep, golden colour.